1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a multipurpose syringe having a piston integral with a plunger-conduit system which may be attached to a blood collection receptacle alternately enabling use as a conventional syringe or a blood-fluid collection device, more specifically, a syringe for the hypodermic administration of drugs or other medicinal preparations or the collection of whole blood into a plurality of vacuum glass tubes housed within an attached said blood collection receptacle and concomitantly the collection of an additional volume of whole blood into said blood-fluid collection device from a single hypodermic site for the subsequent transfer of said additional volume of whole blood to a plurality of other types of blood reservoirs, such as blood culture vials.
2. Information Disclosure Statement
With the advent of the acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS), it has become evident that patients with AIDS or other infectious diseases are often candidates for the collection of a plurality of blood samples, and while prior art has made numerous attempts to protect a user from accidental needle sticks, prior art devices means for facilitating a technique for the less cumbersome collection of said plurality of blood samples, and as such, an improved syringe apparatus is indicated.
Given that various medical procedures involve the percutaneous intravenous insertion of an intravenous catheter, a physician or technician will often concomitantly attempt to collect a sample of whole blood for appropriate testing. During the placement of an intravenous catheter, it is a common practice to place the intravenous catheter by use of a trocar extending through the catheter and distally beyond the catheter tip. The trocar carrying the catheter is inserted percutaneously into a patient's vein and the trocar then is removed leaving the catheter in place in the patient's vein. A syringe then is connected to the proximal end of the catheter and a volume of whole blood is drawn from the patient. The syringe then is detached from the intravenous catheter and is fitted with a needle so that the whole blood collected therein then may be injected into several vacuum glass tubes and blood culture vials, each tube and vial being intended for use in a different test. The foregoing procedure involves numerous steps, is time consuming and is cumbersome. Additionally, the physician or technician is often unable to collect a sufficient volume of whole blood for the number of blood test indicated. And when a larger volume syringe is attached to the intravenous catheter as means for obtaining a sufficient volume of whole blood, the patient's vein often collapses, prior to the collection of a sufficient volume of whole blood, because the larger syringe generates too great of a negative pressure for the patient's vein to withstand. Yet further, if the patient's vein does not collapse, the procedure still remains time consuming in addition to the inevitable threat of an accidental needle stick while injecting the collected whole blood into the vacuum glass tubes.
Various other medical procedures involve the percutaneous intravenous insertion of a hypodermic needle for purposes of simultaneously collecting whole blood for vacuum glass tubes and blood culture vials. During such procedures, it is a common practice to first attach a syringe to a hypodermic needle and subsequently, the needle is percutaneously placed into the patient's vein. Whole blood then may be drawn within the syringe and subsequently injected into vacuum glass tubes and blood culture vials. This procedure too is fraught with the problems described above. In an effort to alleviate the problems associated with this procedure, a Butterfly needle or a hypodermic needle is directly attached to a blood collection receptacle, and in so doing, a plurality of vacuum glass tubes may be filled. Then thereafter, said blood collection receptacle is detached from said Butterfly needle or said hypodermic needle, and with said Butterfly needle or said hypodermic needle still remaining in the patient's vein, a syringe is attached thereto and an additional volume of whole blood may be obtained for blood culture vials. However, this procedure is fraught with many manipulations and increases patient anxiety because of the continuous distal and proximal movement of the needles during the required attaching and detaching of the devices described, as well as that movement of the needles required to ensure that the tips thereof have remained within the lumen of the patient's vein. Yet further, because blood flow through the respective needle is not continuous, the blood therein has a tendency to clot, thereby further complicating the procedure. Yet even further, if the physician chooses to stick the patient twice, the patient by necessity must have another peripheral venous access site, and again, patient anxiety is unduly increased.
Various other medical procedures involve the percutaneous intravenous insertion of a trocar into the subclavian or internal jugular veins for purposes of central venous catheterization. This catheterization procedure is often indicated on patients requiring large volumes of fluid. Additionally, many of these patients require numerous blood test. And as such, during the placement the trocar, it is a common practice to attach a syringe to the trocar and subsequently, the trocar is percutaneously inserted into the patient's subclavian or internal jugular vein. Whole blood then may be drawn into the syringe in the usual fashion and subsequently transferred to a plurality of vacuum glass tubes. Although the physician may obtain a sufficient volume of whole blood and does not worry about collapse of the patient's large central vein, the subsequent transfer of the collected whole blood to vacuum glass tubes remains a time consuming and cumbersome procedure. Additionally, the physician is at an increased risk for an accidental needle stick.
Various other medical procedures involve the percutaneous intravenous insertion of a double tip hollow needle attached to a blood collection receptacle, with one end of said double tip hollow needle extending within said blood collection receptacle and the opposite end extending distally away from said blood collection receptacle, for purposes of obtaining a plurality of whole blood samples. With the distal end of the needle in place in the patient's vein, a plurality of vacuum glass tubes are inserted into the proximal end of said blood collection receptacle and said plurality of whole blood samples are obtained. This procedure is often fraught with difficulties when attempted on obese, elderly, and pediatric patients, as well as intravenous drug abusers, all of which in hereinafter referred to as patients with poor peripheral access. The problems include loss of the negative pressure within said vacuum glass tubes because of continuous proximal and distal motion as means to access the patient's vein, as well as increased physician or technician and patient anxiety. In an effort to alleviate these problems, it is a common practice to attach a small gauge Butterfly needle to a syringe and subsequently percutaneously insert the needle into the patient's vein. Whole blood then may be withdrawn into the syringe and subsequently injected into said plurality of vacuum glass tubes. This procedure is also fraught with the problems noted above and these problems are exacerbated when attempted on a patient with poor peripheral access.
Various other medical procedures involve the percutaneous insertion of a hypodermic needle into the pleural space of a patient with a fluid collection around the lungs. It is a common practice to use a thoracentesis-tray for this procedure when fluid surrounding the lungs is to be removed for both therapeutic and diagnostic purposes. However, if the fluid is to be removed for diagnostic purposes only, a syringe with a hypodermic needle attached thereto is used instead of the thoracentesis-tray. The hypodermic needle is percutaneously inserted into the pleural space, fluid is withdrawn into the syringe and some but not all of the fluid is injected into a plurality of vacuum glass tubes, the remaining fluid being intended for a different kind of test. Therefore, when a thoracentesis is performed for diagnostic purposes only, it too is fraught with the problems noted above; time consuming and cumbersome manipulations, and an increased risk of an accidental needle stick.
In view of the numerous aforementioned problems, the objectives of the present invention are set forth and described herein.
In preparation for this application a review was conducted of patents in Classes 128 and 604, subclasses 764, and 164, 168, 198, respectively. In contradistinction to the patent application at hand, U.S. Pat. No. 4,676,783 of Jagger et. al., Class 604, subclass 198 teaches an outer tube which does not function as a fluid conduit and a flexible inner tube with a function readily distinguishable from that which follows.